The college industry is trying to sell a frightening narrative for them. .
If college sports is indeed an industry in crisis, the so-called crisis will not be on display in Houston as the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Men Basketball Championship will be played. The game will be played in a football stadium that will be packed with people with means who will spend a lot of money to either enjoy themselves cheering or feel an obligation to be there for business purposes. Either way money will flow into the NCAA. The University of Connecticut will be playing San Diego State University for the crown and will be seen on Paramount’s CBS television and various platforms. Paramount is paying a boatload of money for the right to televise the game. But the industry is in a crisis if you believe NCAA President Charlie Baker.
On March 29th, a subcommittee of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held its first hearing related to college sports in more than two years. The lawmakers wanted to know about the so-called problem of names, images and licensing “chaos”. College sports leaders contend they cannot deal with various state regulations concerning how so-called “student-athletes” are being paid by marketing partners and how that is impacting various sports programs nationally. It is a form of free agency where “student-athletes’ can head to some program that is in part influenced by a marketing partner. College presidents, the people who run the industry, really have a problem with “student-athletes” making money off their faces. The college poohbahs want a federal law to bring uniform regulation so they can regain control of the student-athletes. The NCAA is hoping that a federal law would overturn state laws regarding payments to student-athletes. Congress has offered no solution. Meanwhile, the amateur charade will continue as the NCAA pulls in piles of money off the players’ backs at the championship contest.
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